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SILICON VILLAGE

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Accenture and Akshaya Patra, the world’s largest
NGO-run Mid-Day Meal Program, collaborated on an innovative project that used
disruptive technologies to exponentially increase the number of meals served to
children in schools in India that are run and aided by the government. The
“Million Meals” project revolutionized Akshaya Patra’s supply chain and
operations, resulting in improved food quality and expanded service reach.

Rooted in a vision to eliminate child hunger,
the “Million Meals” project demonstrated how disruptive technologies such as
artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain can
help address significant challenges in mass meal production and
delivery. Accenture Labs, the research and development arm of Accenture,
executed the project over a period of six months in Akshaya Patra’s Bengaluru
kitchen. An analysis of the project indicated a potential to improve efficiency
by 20 percent, which could boost the number of meals served by millions.
Akshaya Patra’s goal is to continue to optimize and streamline the program.

Sanjay Podder, managing director, Accenture
Labs, Bengaluru, said,
"The Accenture Labs ‘Tech for Good’ program specializes in solving complex
social problems through the use of innovative technologies. Accenture Labs was
excited to take up the challenge that every paisa saved in producing a single
meal can result in additional meals being served to children. We thought this
was an ideal proving ground to put the combined power of AI, IoT and blockchain
to use.”

"It is indeed heartening to see big players
in technology like Accenture come forward to lend their expertise and help to
address societal challenges like hunger through the innovative use of technology,”
saidShridhar Venkat, CEO, The
Akshaya Patra Foundation. “This initiative not only enhanced efficiency
while giving a boost to our operations, but ensured that quality standards are
met while increasing the number of meals served. We aim to expand our reach to
millions of more children with the help of such technologies. This is just the
beginning; we look forward to more collaborations with Accenture.”

Accenture Labs began the project with a
strategic assessment and design thinking, then developed a prototype for
improving kitchen operations and outcomes. Technologies were then applied to
four critical processes: collecting school feedback, tracking food delivery,
measuring the quantity of food and supplies to be purchased, and monitoring meal
production.

As a result of these process enhancements,
Akshaya Patra improved their audit capabilities, attendance recording, invoice
processing and payment, order and data collection, and food preparation
operations, allowing for expanded production capabilities and establishing a
blueprint for operating other kitchens.

An example of Akshaya Patra’s transformation was
its move from manual collection of feedback from children and schools to a more
efficient technology-based solution. Using blockchain and sensor-enabled
devices, the technical team gathered feedback digitally, leveraging AI
technologies to predict the next day’s meal requirements. The team tracked the
timeliness of food delivered to each school involved in the initiative and
collected the data using mobile devices and an Accenture-built system.

The team also used IoT sensors to monitor and
sequence the cooking process to ensure optimum energy consumption and
consistent food quality. This system not only aided in tracking kitchen
performance but also provided accurate, real-time data to identify trends, make
better informed decisions and save valuable time and effort.